Who loves palindromes?

Amethyst Princess of Gemworld #1 (second series)

This is the first issue of the second run of Amethyst. This series started out ok, but later issues pulled Amethyst into DC continuity (Crisis on Infinite Earths, etc) and it didn’t finish very well.

The cover shows Amy changing into Amethyst as she arrives on the Gemworld by stepping through a magical portal. Unfortunately things aren’t quite that easy, because as we saw in the Annual, the road between the worlds has been clogged with all sorts of magical junk.

The title of this issue is “The Long Way Home.”

Amethyst is searching for the door to the Gemworld, but she can’t find it. In fact she can barely see because the path is so blocked.

After searching for a little while, she realizes that she’s lost her way back to Earth, and a fish creature with electric eye stalks starts to attack her. When she attacks it with her magic, its eyes light up. She hits it again to get a little more light, and she finds the Earth portal just in time.

She rejoins her parents and Emmy on the other side.

Amy is bothered because the blocked path to the Gemworld may prevent her from keeping her promise to return and help out the Gemworld again if she is needed. But she doesn’t know what else to try, so she’s almost ready to “stick with Earth for good”. She wonders what to do about Emmy, but Emmy comments that she’s doesn’t mind the Earth and has been happier than she’s been in years. Amy thinks that it isn’t a surprise that Emmy feels safe on earth after her older sister and mother were murdered on the Gemworld.

Prince Topaz is sailing to Lord Aquamarine’s islands on a ship filled with scurvy miscreants. He’s not happy about having to buy passage, but he has no choice because his sister wouldn’t lend him a ship from the Topaz fleet.

Topaz has heard a rumor that Amethyst has taken up residence on one of the islands. A volcano spews in the distance, with scary faces shown in the smoke. The sailors take this as a bad luck omen and want to turn back. Topaz says that Amethyst is on the island and might be in terrible danger. One of the sailors comments “One noble more or less makes little difference to the likes of us!” Topaz replies “Do you say that my life means nothing to you either?” and blasts him with yellow energy. He’s annoyed that Amethyst saved such scum when she saved everyone from Dark Opal’s reign.

Topaz summons the spirits of the wind to blow the ship towards the island. The sailors decide to feed Topaz to the fishes and toss him overboard. Topaz is rescued by some of Lord Aquamarine’s retainers, who ride up on some giant seahorses. When Topaz gets ashore he is surprised that no one else has noticed the smoke from the volcano. They say that it has been inactive for years. Topaz heads towards the volcano thinking that if Amethyst has come to the Gemworld again for a secret purpose he is going to seek her out and “renew my vow of love.” Topaz is a little pushy.

He finds an inhabited cave, and calls out “Amethyst, why did you not tell me you’d returned my love?” A voice replies “Why it should be obvious my love. I have come to destroy your world. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA” You can tell by the manic laughter that it is the infamous side-ponytail lady from the Annual, although this time she has traded in her hairstyle for a medusa-like green mask.

Amy’s enjoying a cookout with her parents, Emmy, and Rita. Mr. Winston is having problems lighting the grill, so Emmy helps out with some magic. Amy wonders why Emmy’s powers still function on Earth, and Emmy explains that since her green magic is elemental she can tap into the planet’s life force to produce mystic energy. Amy wonders about her own powers. But wait! There’s something nasty lurking in the shrubbery!

Amy thinks it was just her imagination. She talks about how she transformed into Amethyst briefly at school (back in issue 5 of the first mini-series). Apparently everyone’s memories of the event were erased. Rita comments that thinking about someone erasing her memories being erased gives her the willies. Amy’s Mother says that they’d all be better off if they knew nothing of the Gemworld. Amy replies “How can you say that Mom?! I was born on the Gemworld! There are people I love there!” For a child psychiatrist, Amy’s Mom certainly has some issues with relating to her daughter. There’s a crash from next door and everyone runs over to peak at the new neighbors who are moving in.

A piano has fallen out of the moving truck. A man who looks suspiciously like Dark Opal comments that disaster has a way of following him around. Emmy and Amy are horrified but assume it must be a weird coincidence that someone that looks like Dark Opal is moving in next door. A boy runs out of the house yelling “Uncle Orville!” He’s introduced as Carl. Amy thinks that he looks very familiar. Carl seems even more familiar when he reveals that he has a prosthetic hand.

The boy next door is a teenage Prince Carnelian?!

The Gemworld nobility have gathered in the Diamond temple to talk about the recent plague of natural disasters. As usual the discussion devolves into petty arguments although Lord Ruby tries to maintain order.

Lord Garnet thinks that nothing has changed since his self-imposed exile. All the old bickering and petty jealousies have flared up again. He wishes Amethyst was there to unite the nobility and make them work towards the common good. There’s a horrible earthquake. Lady Emerald and Lord Aquamarine think that it was the worst so far. Sardonyx seems unsurprised. He smirks a little bit, thinking “Only Sardonyx knows that each and every one of you will meet your end when you meet Fire Jade!” He stares at an amulet in his hand that is filled with the image of Topaz’s laughing cave woman.

Fire Jade is happy that Sardonyx is sending her all the dirt on the nobles’ meeting. She tortures Topaz by kissing him, filling Topaz’s mind with visions of him killing his father (back in issue 7). Topaz’s memories of Amethyst are warped, leading him to think that she forced him to kill his real father, not the creature of Opal his father had become. Amethyst abandons him. Topaz is haunted by voices yelling “Patricide!” Fire Jade tells him that everyone he loves had betrayed him, but she alone stay with him.

Why do the women of the Gemworld love Prince Topaz so much? I’ve come to the conclusion that there are very slim pickings in the twenty-something Gemworld male nobility pool. There’s Topaz, Prince Carnelian, and Prince Moonstone. Not a lot of choice there.

Castle Amethyst is being battered by storms. Citrina tosses and turns in her bed, calling out Amethyst’s name. Amy and Emmy are getting ready for bed, wondering if Carnelian and Opal really moved next door. Emmy wonders why Carnelian looks so young, and Amy explains that it must be due to the different way time works on Earth and the Gemworld. Since Carnelian was adopted from Earth at the same time Amy was hidden there, his earth form is younger. Amy and Emmy decide to try and figure out what Carnelian is planning tomorrow and turn in for the evening.

Emmy sees that once Amy falls asleep, a spirt-form of Amethyst rises up out of her sleeping body. Amethyst finds herself in her castle, summoned by Citrina’s call. She talks to Laral, one of the servants at the castle. Laral hasn’t heard Citrina calling, but she’s afraid that the witch-mother may be close to death. Amy’s parents visit Emmy, they heard her cry out when Amethyst left. Amy is in a sleep that she can’t wake from. Amy’s parents go to shake her, but Emmy prevents them. She says the sleep is magical and Amy shouldn’t be disturbed.

So Amy’s in a coma, Citrina’s dying, the Gemworld is being plagued by nature run amok, Topaz has been kidnapped and brainwashed by the clearly evil Fire Jade, and Carnelian is up to something on Earth! That’s a jam-packed first issue.